Microscopics

Paul Nasca is the creator of  superstar timestretch tool, PaulStretch, which stretches audio up to a billion times its original length.
The Internet was abuzz last week with a PaulStretch version of pop puppet Justin Bieber’s song, ‘U Smile’. Musician Nick Pittsinger cheekily stretched the original 3:21 song into a 35 minute ambient monster, which has now had 1.8 million plays in just one week, and so casting PaulStretch and Paul Nasca into the limelight. On Monday we posted our own 38 minute PaulStretch version of ‘Microscopic’, originally a 9 minute track.

J. BIEBZ – U SMILE 800% SLOWER by Shamantis

We spoke to Paul, who lives in Romania, about the rapid rise to fame of his free open-source PaulStretch tool, why he wrote it, how it performs its magic and he also shares a few tips for any musicians using it.

MAT JARVIS: How long have you been programming, what makes you create audio software and do you have any other software available?

PAUL NASCA: I am in programming since 1992 but I do audio software since 1996. My first software was a non-realtime software synthesizer “Paul’s Sound Designer” a DOS program which lets you synthesize sounds by adding many waveforms.

Since 2002 I am working on open-source realtime software: ZynAddSubFX which has many sound synthesis methods and effects (including a new sound synthesis algorithm designed by me: PADsynth ). ZynAddSubFX is included in many Linux distributions (or at least in default repositories) and (I believe) it is much more used than PaulStretch.

Also, I wrote some minor audio software (like Hypermmamut, unfinished software which converts audio to images and vice-versa) and I contributed to other open source projects (e.g: I wrote a few effects for Audacity).
Another open source project written by me, but unrelated to audio, is some software which enhances pictures: zynaddsubfx.sourceforge.net/other/tonemapping, and here are some videos processed with it: vimeo.com/user1194931/videos.

Regarding on what makes me create audio software is that I like to make beautiful sounds and I try to experiment a lot with audio. Some audio software (or part of them) was created because different reasons (more personal ;-) (MJ: intriguing! ) .

Gas – Microscopic 600 (edit) by microscopics
Free downloadfor a limited time (89mb)

MAT: Do you make these audio tools to help with your own music making or for others?

PAUL: It depends: Paulstretchwas made for myself, but after hearing the results I decided to share it. On the other hand, ZynAddSubFX and the PADsynth algorithm was made with sharing in mind.

MJ: What was the original inspiration, why did you decide to create such an extreme timestretch program? Continue reading…

Hemisphere have just released update 1.6.3 to the iPad version of Osmos

Howdy folks,

Just wanted to let you know that update 1.6.3 for iPad just hit the store.

Here are the details:
- Level tweaks: Warped Chaos levels 3 to 9 were too easy. Much more interesting now! (Same as on iPhone now.)
- Level tweaks: Made a number of Odyssey levels a tiny bit easier. If you were stuck, give it another try.
- Play your own music. (By starting Osmos while your music is playing.)
- Fix for achievement granting bug.
- Other minor bug fixes.

Cheers!
Eddy Boxerman

ps. now would be an excellent time to write a nice, “useful” review, as the App Store review page resets on update. Thanks!

Visit Hemisphere Games…

Here is our track Gas – Microscopic stretched by 600% into 38 minutes of ambience. After the fun last week on Gawker, stretching pop tracks into ambient monsters, we thought we’d join in.

The original before editing is just over one hour long. The world’s longest single is 43 minutes, so perhaps we should have uploaded the original.
On the maximum hyperStretch setting the track comes to a rather lengthy 18822 years for a full performance, with a bpm approaching negative numbers.

 Close the curtains and turn off the lights.
Gas – Microscopic 600 (edit) by microscopics
Free download for a limited time (89mb)

And compared to the 9 minute original.Gas – Microscopic by microscopics
Free download (9mb)

UPDATE: read our interview with PaulStretch creator Paul Nasca

…

Hemisphere have just released update 1.6.3 to the iPhone version of Osmos

Howdy folks,

Just wanted to let you know that update 1.6.3 for iPhone just hit the store.

Here are the details:
- High resolution icon for iPhone 4.
- Music plays after phone call interruption.
- Fix for achievement granting bug.
- Other minor bug fixes.

Cheers!
Eddy

ps. now would be an excellent time to write a nice, “useful” review, as the App Store review page resets on update. Thanks!

Visit Hemisphere Games…

Last week we linked up with Plague Recordings for the Pump CD giveaway on our blog, this week it’s Plague’s turn to give away our Gas 0095 CD on their blog.

Just add a comment on their blog to win. The draw finishes on Sunday 22th (sic)

Visit Plague’s blog and win a CD…

…

Thanks to everyone who entered our free Osmos draw. These are the winners drawn by Eddy Boxerman, creator of Osmos…

Lance Kopper
Nick Poznick
Graham Metcalfe

Congratulations! We will be contacting you to see if you prefer the iPhone or iPad version.

If you weren’t lucky enough to win, it really is a great game/experience which I can recommend, and reached the heady heights of No1 in the App Store and Apple’s App of the Week. For more info you can see Osmos for iPhone, and for iPad in the App Store. It is also available for PC, Mac and Linux (get all three versions for $10) from Hemisphere Games.

…

These are the lucky winners for the Pump CD draw (Plague Recordings), drawn by top Plague cheese Fre de Vos. We will be contacting you for your location in space…

Simon Czentnar
Eric
Brad Porter

Congratulations to the winners! Your CDs will be casually making their way to your door direct from Plague Recordings.

Thanks to everyone who entered, here is your free track from the album

Pump – Falling From Grace

Visit Plague Recordings…

…

Osmos for iPhone/iPod Touch has been released and we have copies to give away! Osmos for iPad, made by those super talented people at Hemisphere Games and festuring music by Gas & High Skies, went straight to No1 in the App Store (yikes!) and was the App of the Week everywhere. The winners get to chose either the iPhone or iPad version.

UPDATE: Osmos is now Apple’s App of the Week!

Add a comment below to win…

Steve Jobs engrossed in Osmos (one of the later and harder levels)

Osmos for iPhone features full Retina display and iOS 4.0 support (also works great on iOS3), along with all the familiar features from the iPad version: addictive, physics-based gameplay, fluid multitouch controls, lush, flowing visuals, and a chill, ambient electronic soundtrack. It will be priced at (the low, iPhone-market style) $2.99.

The #1 question we get asked is “how will Osmos look and play on the iPhone’s small screen, especially with my fat fingers?” The answer: very nicely! Check out this video to see it in action.

We’ve put a lot of work into this version (in fact the iPad “inherited” a lot of that work), and we hope you’ll enjoy it! For more information on features, the trailer, and awesome reviews of the iPad version, check out the Osmos for iPad page.

Available now at the App Store

The winners will be drawn by Eddy Boxerman from Hemisphere Games (the creators of Osmos), on 12 Aug 2010 (next Thursday) using the randomness of atmospheric noise.

Note that we don’t keep or share anyone’s email addresses, so there’s no reason not to enter! If you already own a copy or don’t own an iPhone/iPod we can gift it to a friend for you.

Win a copy, add a comment below…

…

For this month’s giveaway we’re teaming up with Plague Recordings for the special release of the Pump – Sombrero Fallout album. Recorded between 1988 to 1992 and unreleased til now, seventeen years later. This is Pump’s second album, or more if you count their early cassette-only releases, and we have three copies on CD to give away!

Just add a few words in the comments section below for a chance to win.

The three lucky/random numbers will be drawn out of a lucky/random hat by Fré De Vos, big chief at Plague, on 12 Aug 2010 (Next Thursday)

Pump were Andrew Cox and David Elliott, a pair of like-minded electronic music fiends who met at Brighton Uni in ‘79. The album is a darkly mix of electronic ambience and the odd acoustic instrument, containing a wealth of juicy analog gear in the form of Roland SH-101, SH-09, and MC-202; ARP Odyssey; Korg MS10, DDM110 and DDM220; Casio SK1, EMU Emulator II; Yamaha YSS-200, plus a few ‘real’ instruments and was recorded to a 4 track portastudio.

Free full MP3 for everyone who enters

Pump – Falling From Grace

Note that we don’t keep or share anyone’s email addresses, so there’s no reason not to enter!

Visit Plague Recordings website

Add a comment now…

…

Tom McBride sent us this super charming video he made for The Earth at Night, from our recent High Skies – Sounds of Earth EP. The video and music work great together; both have a childlike positiveness and are looking ahead to a future where everything is silver.

TOM McBRIDE:
The way I put music to video is simply find things that fit as opposed to making them fit.

The video sampled was from ‘Way Stations in Space’ (1961), which was an educational film that introduced “the basic scientific principles of using a manned space platform in helping explore the universe.”

I felt that this portion of the film captured a kind-of passive innocence that resonated throughout the three minutes and four seconds of “The Earth at Night”.

At first, I thought the track title and video clashed horribly but then I developed a small storyline to make them mesh. At the beginning the space ship arrives to re-supply and give communiques from Earth that are to be relayed into space. The video then pans to an underground communications facility where the greetings are being relayed, then to people working on the Lunar surface who are maintaining the communications equipment. Finally, the ship leaves right after the last greetings is sent, and then proceeds onto Mars and subsequently the rest of of the universe.

Many thanks Tom!

…